Next Gen Xbox will be Disc-less Confirmed

[CaseAgainstFaith]

MCV has learnt that Microsoft has been telling partners that the Next Xbox will NOT include a disc drive.

The briefings have been issued under what MCV’s source describes as “the strictest NDA” they have ever encountered.

Although the console will not include a disc drive, it will offer compatibility with some sort of interchangeable solid-state card storage, although it is not known whether this will be proprietary or a more standard format such as SD.

Furthermore, a 2013 launch date for the hardware has been confirmed. What is less clear, however, is the intended timing of Microsoft’s announcement.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/exclusive-no-disc-drive-for-next-xbox/092534

This could blow up in MS's face if they handle this wrong.  Not say it is a bad idea, but with bandwidth speeds and to some extent bandwidth caps, downloading games as a only option wouldn't work so well.  The only thing I could see is if somehow they went to like a SSD or SD cartridge to maybe install the game onto the Xbox as a option.  Though either way if this is true and they don't come up with a alternative solution I find palatable it will be back to PC only gaming for me (which isn't really a bad thing either haha)

[Art Vandelay]

It looks to me like they're simply moving from disks to solid-state cards as their physical storage medium of choice (Much like going from floppies to CDs during the '90's). Assuming SD technology is at a point where it has higher capacity and access speed to DVDs, I don't see how this can be anything other than a good thing.

[Yaezakura]

I can see it being a bad thing in that they can program the cards to wipe themselves after an installation, or to link themselves to a single machine and never being able to be used at, say, a friend's house or anything like that. Not to say they definitely will, but the possibility is very real. We already have PC games that only let you install them so many times before locking up--I don't really think anyone wants to deal with that headache on consoles.

[Art Vandelay]

If PC games already do that, then it means they can already pull similar shenanigans with games stored on DVDs. Not sure why it'll be a new thing just because it's now done with SD cards.

[Yaezakura]

If PC games already do that, then it means they can already pull similar shenanigans with games stored on DVDs. Not sure why it'll be a new thing just because it's now done with SD cards.

Well, the big issue is that PC games are moving into this "always online" mentality. No internet connection, no gaming. At all. Some modern titles can't even be played in single player mode without an active connection. So whenever you install a game on a PC, depending on what "security protections" exist, it may decide your activation code has been used to install it too many times and not validate. Spore was an example of this--I believe it can only be installed 3 times before having to call customer service and bitch them out for more validations.

Consoles, to date, haven't really subscribed to that idea--while being online can create all sorts of benefits, you could always just go buy your game and never connect your console to the internet. But this new media will make it rather easy to cause legitimate console consumers the same headaches PC gamers are already having.

[Art Vandelay]

But this new media will make it rather easy to cause legitimate console consumers the same headaches PC gamers are already having.

Maybe I'm just a thickie, but I don't see how that's the fault of using solid state cards, as they could just as easily pull the same shit even if they stuck with DVDs as their physical format of choice as evidenced by the fact that PC gamers have been dealing with this shit for years. To me it looks like more an issue of poorly thought out and draconic approaches to combating piracy than their physical storage medium of choice.

[Yaezakura]

But this new media will make it rather easy to cause legitimate console consumers the same headaches PC gamers are already having.

Maybe I'm just a thickie, but I don't see how that's the fault of using solid state cards, as they could just as easily pull the same shit even if they stuck with DVDs as their physical format of choice as evidenced by the fact that PC gamers have been dealing with this shit for years. To me it looks like more an issue of poorly thought out and draconic approaches to combating piracy than their physical storage medium of choice.

What I mean is, unless they move consoles to "always online", they couldn't really do this without changing media. However, the new media will allow them to program in wipe programs or lockups directly onto the game card. So you may still not need to connect to the internet with the new console, but your copy of Halo 50 will bind to your new XBox and never operate on any other one. So you couldn't, for example, take it to a friend's house to play with them after using it on your own system.

[ironbite]

Which, as we've seen, would be a dick move and cause them to lose business.

Ironbite-and then they wouldn't do it anymore.

[RavynousHunter]

Yeah, if they were going to lock you out like that, I think they'd be more likely to lock your game copy to your online account.  In the case of the new Xbox, your LIVE account.

Its retarded, but not "THIS DISK WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN 30 SECONDS" retarded.

Also, I can't help but notice that we're pretty much going back to using cartridges for games.

[Canadian Mojo]

A proprietary (read-only) storage medium would eliminate a lot of piracy simply because people couldn't clone it easily. All you would have to do is make the game only playable if the card is in the machine and enforce your patents very vigorously to keep a third party from developing a work-around ram-card with programmable security key.

They don't need to be dicks and tie things to a machine, or limit installs, or be on-line only...the question is whether or not they'll be dicks anyway.






(you should probably ignore me, I'm a luddite)

[Art Vandelay]

What I mean is, unless they move consoles to "always online", they couldn't really do this without changing media. However, the new media will allow them to program in wipe programs or lockups directly onto the game card. So you may still not need to connect to the internet with the new console, but your copy of Halo 50 will bind to your new XBox and never operate on any other one. So you couldn't, for example, take it to a friend's house to play with them after using it on your own system.

Fair enough, but, as you said, can't you already do that with DVD-based games via limited activation codes? Most current gen console games have to install themselves on your console's hard drive anyway, so it would be easily doable.

As for wipes, I have to agree with Rav and Ibs that I severely doubt they'd go that far. Locking it to your Xbox Live account, I could certainly see, but not an install and cartridge wipe (unless at the very least they bring in an Xbox Live cloud). What the fuck are you supposed to do when your hard drive fills up, corrupts or breaks?

[Witchyjoshy]

At first, I thought "Download-Only?  Neat!"

Then I thought "Download-Only?  Well, those without ethernet are fucked."

Then I thought "Oh, SD Cards, DERP!"

Personally, I'm hoping Microsoft doesn't bother with any sort of hard-assed DRM.  That would just be stupid.

Still, though, I find it amusing that the X-Box 3 games are going to come as tiny little cards.  And they're going to plug into a system that is probably not going to be that tiny.

[Shane for Wax]

I have a question: why is MCV the only one who has this information and all the other sites are taking that information as gospel? Something smells fishy.

Especially when adding this:

Video games and computing site MCV got the information from a source said to have been sworn to "the strictest NDA" encountered from the Xbox team.

Uh... huh. Yeah, if it's NDA then you don't disclose it. At all. Even under anonymity. Unless you're a big honkin' liar and want to get arrested for breaking NDA.

So someone is lying at some point.

[Art Vandelay]

Still, though, I find it amusing that the X-Box 3 games are going to come as tiny little cards.  And they're going to plug into a system that is probably not going to be that tiny.

I derived similar amusement from the DS games when I first acquired my DS. They come on those miniscule cartridges which are packaged in boxed around 50 times their size. There's so much free space inside these boxes that they stick a Game Boy Advance cartridge slot in there too, just because they can.

[RavynousHunter]

Man, using SD cards for games would cut down on case size, like...drastically, if they were at all intelligent about it.  Which is good, those motherfuckers take up a lotta space.  And they like to destroy your discs if you aren't careful...  >.>